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Advance Parole travel authorization is available to foreign nationals who are present in the U.S. and who have filed I-485 Applications to Adjust Status to Permanent Resident. This authorization enables a foreign national to return to the U.S. from abroad; (i) without the need to possess a valid Nonimmigrant Visa; and (ii) without abandoning a recently filed or pending Adjustment of Status Application. Advance Parole is issued for a one year period and may be renewed in one-year increments upon written application filed with the Citizenship and Immigration Service (CIS). An Adjustment of Status Application is not suspended while a foreign national travels abroad, nor does the CIS adjudication of an adjustment case stop. In short, an Adjustment Application is not affected by one's use of an Advance Parole document.

Use of Advance Parole

Most CIS offices issue Advance Parole documents in duplicate (two copies) but some offices issue the documents in triplicate. In either case, you should take all copies with you when you leave the U.S.

Returning to the U.S. by Air. If you return to the U.S. by airline, the airline that will transport you back to
the U.S. is supposed to ask to see your U.S. Visa or your Advance Parole Authorization. The airline is supposed to (but sometimes does not) retain one of the two parole document copies (the one marked: To: Transportation), leaving you with the To: Alien copy, which you will present to the U.S. Immigration Officer upon arrival in the U.S. Because Parole documents are valid for one year and for multiple applications, be certain that you retain the To: Alien document (the one with your photograph affixed) for similar
use concerning any trips you might take during the period of time your Parole Document is valid. If the airline does take one of the copies (as it is supposed to), do not be concerned that the next time you travel you will not have a Parole Document to surrender to the airline. Surrendering one copy of your Advance Parole to the airline is a one-time occurrence. You are not required to surrender an Advance Parole copy to the airline if you use your Advance Parole Document to travel back to the U.S. again in the future. Please remember that your Immigration Inspection/clearance and entry into the U.S. likely might take longer than in the past. Accordingly, you should budget adequate additional time for any subsequent airline connections you might need to make after you clear U.S. Customs and Border Protection Inspection (CBP).

Returning by Land. If you travel back to the United State by land (such as by car over the U.S. - Canada or U.S. - Mexico border), you will present to CBP both copies of your Advance Parole Authorization. In all likelihood, you will be asked to park your car and step inside the inspection building to complete the U.S. admission process.

In all cases, whether you enter the U.S. via air or land, the CBP will issue you a Form I-94 Card Departure Record that will
reflect that you have been paroled into the U.S. for completion of your Adjustment of Status Application.

Copies of the I-94 Cards

Please send us copies of your (and/or your family members') new I-94 Cards whenever you (or they) re-enter the U.S. following a trip abroad. If you do not send us copies, we will not be able to monitor your lawful presence in the U.S., nor will we be able to respond to any CIS requests for information about your status during the period of time that your Adjustment Application is pending.